The drive toward automation promises to have far-reaching impacts on both technology deployment as well as CFOs’ expectations of team skillsets today and in the future. As previously reported, Microsoft Excel is no longer regarded to be the “most important skill” either for the finance teams of today or for new hires in the future. Rather, CFOs want to hire well-rounded professionals who can adapt to new technologies; clearly define, analyse, and measure KPIs; and communicate and collaborate with stakeholders across the business.

With a winning combination of technical savvy and soft skills like analysis, communication and collaboration, FP&A professionals will be able to deliver on the key drivers toward automation— the need to manage an increasingly complex and growing volume of data, while delivering the strategic reporting and analysis that stakeholders demand.